Hello everyone,
After almost a year’s break, we have resumed our building project and are planning a new floor plan.
We’re stuck when it comes to the open-plan living area, so I would like to hear your opinions!
Our garden faces west, and to the south, the neighboring property begins after three meters (10 feet).
Option 1:
Overall, we like this option best. BUT: Is it possibly too tight? About one meter (3 feet) between the sofa and table—is that too cramped? It’s enough for walking through, but maybe it compromises comfort on the couch? Currently, we have much more space between the couch and table, but not as much room depth as in the planned layout. We are thinking of trying to place the table this close to the sofa in our current apartment to get a feel for it.
Pros: Great window view to the west, a skylight to the south (brings in plenty of light but prevents the neighbor from looking into our house), from the couch you can see the room, the garden, and the TV.
Cons: Is it too narrow in width?
Option 2:
Same setup, only the table is rotated. Basically, a table with a footprint of 1.00 x 2.00 meters (3 x 6.5 feet) requires a total space of 2.00 x 2.00 meters (6.5 x 6.5 feet) to accommodate chairs. In this arrangement, all guests could look out to the garden. In option 1, both the sofa and the kitchen island have visual contact with all guests.
Option 3:
The sofa and the entertainment wall are swapped. The skylight to the south changes to a floor-to-ceiling window, but the window to the west is removed.
Pros: More freedom of movement in the room, sofa hidden behind the fireplace, more coziness.
Cons: No view of the garden from the sofa, loss of a west window, view of the fireplace only from the side.
We have gotten so lost in the planning that we can’t see the forest for the trees right now.
What do you think?
Thanks and best regards,
Ypsi
After almost a year’s break, we have resumed our building project and are planning a new floor plan.
We’re stuck when it comes to the open-plan living area, so I would like to hear your opinions!
Our garden faces west, and to the south, the neighboring property begins after three meters (10 feet).
Option 1:
Overall, we like this option best. BUT: Is it possibly too tight? About one meter (3 feet) between the sofa and table—is that too cramped? It’s enough for walking through, but maybe it compromises comfort on the couch? Currently, we have much more space between the couch and table, but not as much room depth as in the planned layout. We are thinking of trying to place the table this close to the sofa in our current apartment to get a feel for it.
Pros: Great window view to the west, a skylight to the south (brings in plenty of light but prevents the neighbor from looking into our house), from the couch you can see the room, the garden, and the TV.
Cons: Is it too narrow in width?
Option 2:
Same setup, only the table is rotated. Basically, a table with a footprint of 1.00 x 2.00 meters (3 x 6.5 feet) requires a total space of 2.00 x 2.00 meters (6.5 x 6.5 feet) to accommodate chairs. In this arrangement, all guests could look out to the garden. In option 1, both the sofa and the kitchen island have visual contact with all guests.
Option 3:
The sofa and the entertainment wall are swapped. The skylight to the south changes to a floor-to-ceiling window, but the window to the west is removed.
Pros: More freedom of movement in the room, sofa hidden behind the fireplace, more coziness.
Cons: No view of the garden from the sofa, loss of a west window, view of the fireplace only from the side.
We have gotten so lost in the planning that we can’t see the forest for the trees right now.
What do you think?
Thanks and best regards,
Ypsi
M
Myrna_Loy25 May 2021 12:14I wouldn’t plan a dedicated play corridor. It looks really cool on Pinterest, but toys tend to end up in walkways naturally—you don’t need to encourage it intentionally if you have enough space. 🙂 🙂 Better to have a coffee machine there instead.
Y
Ypsi aus NI25 May 2021 12:14haydee schrieb:
In the early years, children usually play in the same room where the parents are. This is also the main reason for having the home office and the children's room on the same level. One parent is in the office, and the child is in the same room but can easily go to their own room to get new or different toys. If absolute quiet is needed for a moment, the partner is right next door and can take over with the child. That’s the idea behind it. Everything is simply closer together.
In our region, 60% of kindergarten applications have recently been rejected due to lack of space... Childcare and working at the same time is a realistic scenario, and something really needs to change here soon in favor of being more child-friendly.
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Ypsi aus NI25 May 2021 12:18haydee schrieb:
I would distribute the rooms evenly. There is a lack of space downstairs. Even if it might be said that the parents go upstairs. In terms of square meters alone, it doesn’t fit well either. Especially since we definitely are not allowed to build two full floors, and there should be two full bathrooms upstairs. A shower bathroom downstairs, if everyone sleeps upstairs, seems to me to be pure nonsense!
It is, as described in the previous post: Every floor plan is always a compromise. The question is whether I’m willing to accept it and how much it bothers me.
Ypsi aus NI schrieb:
Guys, I’d really like to discuss parts of the floor plan.
For example, in the upper floor, we have the option to use a huge hallway as a flexible room. It would actually make more sense to discuss the entire floor plan, because often adjusting one area has a big impact around the next corner, and everything ends up being rotated. 😉
Otherwise, I really like the idea of a large shared playroom, though how long it will be used that way is another question. By the time kids are teenagers, they might not want to share with their younger or older siblings anymore… so it’s worth considering now whether that space can be modified or used differently later on. Acoustic separation is another important topic—for example, if it’s open to the gallery, it can get quite loud.
Ypsi aus NI schrieb:
This is also the main reason for having the home office and the children’s room on the same level. The parent is in the office, and the child is in the same room. But the child can quickly get new or different toys from their own room. If absolute quiet is needed for a short time, the partner is right next door and can take care of the child. That’s the idea behind it. Everything is simply closer together.
In our region, 60% of kindergarten applications have been rejected because there is no space... Balancing childcare and work at the same time is a realistic scenario, and something should change soon to be more child-friendly here. What? That’s intense. I’m glad to live in a small town.
But especially there, it might be better to have the workspace on a different level.
It’s a lot of “if” and “then”...
You don’t need two bathrooms upstairs. Not even if the parents sleep upstairs, especially only occasionally. By the time the kids use a children’s bathroom, they’re older and either you or the teenager is downstairs.
I would redesign the ground floor. The utility room is large, the bedroom cramped, and the walk-in closet is a dark row of cabinets. With four almost equally sized rooms of about 18 square meters (about 194 square feet) each, one of them downstairs, you’d be relatively flexible for all those ifs and thens...
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Ypsi aus NI25 May 2021 12:50haydee schrieb:
KuhkaffWe are in a small town too... And yet it is so difficult to get a spot here. For daycare, for example, you pay around 600-700€...Similar topics